A TAILS TALE Prolouge: Memories
by TailsTheFoxx
Summary: Miles "Tails" Prower is a 900 year old kitsune now. Obviously, things have changed. Although the world seems very secure under the strong kitsune, the fragile balance can be easily broken...
1. Chapter 1

**A Tails Tale**

_Prologue: Memories_

_Tails' Journal_

_To all those who wish for immortality, you don't even know what you're asking for. Being "forever young" _sounds_ awesome, but after awhile you'll realize that forever is a long, long time. You'll never age, never change, as the world around you moves on. That includes friends and family. _

It was 11:30pm, Christmas Eve. A nine-tailed kitsune made his way through the snow to the town cemetery. The kitsune flicked his first tail, then brushed it over the cemetery's steel gates. They opened with a creak.

The kitsune trudged through the thick layer of snow and ice without a word. He passed the newest gravestones, the older stones, and even cracked, dilapidated stones from past centuries. But still the fox walked on.

After some time he stopped. Before him lay nine freshly polished, shining gravestones. They looked out of place as they were surrounded by the crumbling remains of illegible, long-forgotten stones. The kitsune's gaze softened as he looked upon these stones. He knelt next to the first stone. The fox slipped a holiday wreath off of his ninth tail, for he had a wreath around each of his tails. He then placed the wreath on the gravestone, which read: RIP CREAM THE RABBIT and CHEESE. "I love you Cream," whispered the kitsune.

He proceeded to the next gravestone. This one was labeled KNUCKLES THE ECHIDNA. The fox placed the wreath from his eighth tail on the gravestone. "Knuckles," he began, "Tornado is doing OK. So is the Master Emerald. I promise I'll not let it fall into the wrong hands."

The nine-tailed fox turned to the gravestone next to Knuckles'. This stone was decorated with hundreds of miniature gems. The wreath of the kitsune's seventh tail was also bedazzled with rubies and emeralds. The kitsune placed this wreath on the stone. "You can have all the gems you want now, Rouge," he murmured.

The kitsune walked to the next gravestone, one labeled CHARMY THE BEE. He placed a striped wreath from his sixth tail on this stone, wiped the dirt off of its surface, and left without a word.

The next stone had shuriken protruding from its cracks and in its surface the carvings read RIP ESPIO THE CHAMELEON. The fox placed a plain wreath from his fifth tail on this stone and moved away with a sigh.

The kitsune trudged to a stone shaped like a magnifying glass. He brushed the ice off of this gravestone and the words VECTOR THE ALLIGATOR became visible. The nine-tailed fox removed yet another plain wreath from his fourth tail on this gravestone. "You'll be remembered," was all the fox said before he moved on.

He walked to the next gravestone. This one had two golden ringlets hanging from hooks on either side of the stone. The stone itself was carved with the words SHADOW THE HEDGEHOG. The kitsune placed his third-tail's wreath on this stone. "Hope you are happy with Maria," he said as he walked away.

The kitsune gazed at the following gravestone, which was painted pink and resembled a mallet. He slid the wreath from his second tail and set it in place. "You swung that hammer to the very end, Amy," said the fox as he cleared the snow from the stone. Two words emerged: AMY ROSE.

The nine-tailed fox knelt at the final gravestone. He removed the wreath on his first tail and placed it gently on the stone. The fox carefully brushed the dirt off of the surface of this stone and its carvings became readable: RIP SONIC THE HEDGEHOG. He wiped a tear from his eye as the midnight bells rang downtown. "Merry Christmas, Sonic," he whispered.

The wind picked up just then, and a voice—eerily similar to Sonic's—reached the kitsune's ear: "Merry Christmas, Tails."

_After word: This is a fanfiction inspired by the idea that Tails may be a kitsune. If he is, that would make him immortal. A very cool idea indeed—but Tails himself would be a very sad soul. He would outlive all of his friends and find himself completely alone, for there is no one who shares his status. In this fanfiction Tails is about 9,000 years old and has almost mastered his kitsune powers. I will post the first chapter soon. Please comment and tell me what you think!_


	2. Chapter 2

**A Tails Tale**

_Chapter 1: The New Generation_

_Tails' Journal_

_True friends never leave, even after death, Their souls and spirits stay behind and are reborn in other life forms._

"Uncle Tails! Wake up Uncle Tails!"

"Whaa?" said Tails groggily. "Who's there?"

"It's me! Tornado! Merry Christmas, Uncle Tails!" squealed a pinkish echidna.

Tails laughed. "Hey Tornado! Merry Christmas!" He sat up in bed, pulling the 7-year-old echidna into a tight bear hug. "C'mon sweetie, I have a present for you!" He jumped out of bed, stretched, and walked into the kitchen. Tornado's father, Niro the echidna, was already there. He handed Tails a cup of steaming coffee. "Merry Christmas Unk!" said Niro.

"Noel," answered Tails. Suddenly, a very hyper pink blur burst into the kitchen. "WHERE'S MY PRESENT? I WANT IT NOW!" demanded the blur, which was recognized as a small echidna.

"Okay, okay," chuckled Tails. "Stop yelling, your voice will break my house down!"

"It will?" Tornado squeaked. "Okay so where's my present?" she added with a whisper. Niro chortled loudly. "Quiet!" the 7-year-old hissed. "You'll destroy Uncle Tails' house!" This made Niro laugh even harder.

Tails smiled. "Your present is at my workshop, Tornado. I have to go get it. You can come if you wa—"

"YAY!" the echidna yelled. Then her voice dropped again to a whisper. "Oh, I mean, yaayy," she said quietly.

Niro chuckled. "I'm going home to prepare for the party. You have fun, Tornado! Be safe!" He kissed his daughter goodbye and exited the room.

Tails took Tornado's hand and stepped outside, brushing his first tail on the doorknob. He heard the lock click and stepped forward, Tornado skipping beside him. They went on for about six seconds when Tornado abruptly stopped.

"What is it? Is something wrong?" the fox inquired.

"Use magic!" said Tornado happily. "Please? For Christmas?"

"Not right now, Tornado," said Tails. When the 7-year-old looked disappointed he said, "But… There may be some magic at your father's party…"

"Yay!" said Tornado. "I can't wait!"

The two began to walk again and walked for some time. They were in a snow covered meadow about three miles from the hill where Tails' workshop was hidden when a green streak was seen coming their way. Tails and Tornado stopped, wondering what it was.

The green streak stopped in front of them and became recognizable as Static the Hedgehog.

Static was covered in blood.

_After word: Well there's chapter one. Bon appetit._


	3. Chapter 3

Journal  
When you ask for something, you get the whole package. Yes,  
that means the bad stuff too.

"Static!" cried Tails. "What happened?"  
"I―he―Ivo―" panted Static, then collapsed. Tails knelt and examined  
him more closely. What he had first percieved as blood was actually  
just a sticky red paste. Static had simply collapsed from exhaustion.  
"Is he OK?" asked Tornado timidly.  
"He'll be alright." The kitsune waved his fourth tail over the green  
hedgehog. Instantly, plants grew and the ground shifted to form a  
comfortable bed around Static. Tails turned to Tornado. "Can you be a  
big girl and take care of Static until he wakes up?" he asked the  
echidna. "I'll go to the workshop myself and get your gifts. I imagine  
that it might be, uh, MESSY in there." He thought of Static's last  
half-word, Ivo, and knew what awaited him.  
"Okay Uncle Tails! I'll show you I can be a big girl!" said Tornado.  
"Thats my little echidna," answered Tails, patting her head. "I'll be  
back for you in a few minutes."  
With a flick of his second tail, the wind around Tails picked up and  
soon he was rocketing off to his beloved workshop.  
Tails' "workshop" was actually a multi-story complex that was cleverly  
built into the side of a cliff. Each floor was dedicated to a  
different kind of science, each room for different experiments and  
other little gadgets.  
When he came to the building he noticed that his security pass code pad  
had been smashed. The door swung open easily. As Tails had predicted,  
the inside of the complex was a mess. The first floor, which he had  
made into a nice lobby, looked as though a cyclone passed through it.  
The couch was overturned, the curtains ripped, and his special  
chandelier of glowing computer parts was a pile of rubble on the  
center of the floor. The room was splashed with the same sticky paste  
that covered Static. Tails had a feeling that the rest of his glorious  
workshop was as trashed as the lobby.  
"RINCaHS?" called Tails. "RINCaHS!" No one answered. Tails crossed the  
room to the elevator and hit the button marked BG7. The elevator moved  
down and opened into a long narrow hallway. As he passed, the red  
lights of sentry turrets focused on him, the barrels of their guns sliding out. Recognizing their creator, the turret's glowing red eyes  
dimmed and their guns slid back into their sheaths.  
The door on the opposite end of the hallway gave way to a vast dome-  
shaped room. Wires as thick as an arm hung down from the ceiling and  
connected to intricate pieces of equipment. "RINCaHS," said Tails,  
"wake up."  
Still no response.  
Tails went to the center of the room where a spherical robot was  
wired. He pressed a button on the robot's back and its golden eye lit  
up.  
"Hello, creator," said RINCaHS in her usual female voice.  
"RINCaHS, we have an intruder. Begin emergency lockdown." commanded  
Tails.  
"Yes, sir."  
Suddenly the workshop began to shake with movement. Deadly spinning  
traps activated in hallways, doors became steeled and barred, and  
windows were closed behind iron blocks.  
"Pinpointing intruder," announced RINCaHS. A screen to her right  
flickered on, showing a map of the facility. A red dot blinked in the  
hangars, top floor. Tails quickly went back through the hallway, into  
the elevator, and pressed AG20. The elevator shot upwards. "Stall him,  
RINCaHS," Tails said. "He must not escape."  
"Of course, sir." her voice came through a speaker in the elevator.  
Finally the elevator opened on floor AG20. Tails hurriedly stepped out  
into the large hangar. He looked around. A few of his planes looked  
smashed, but most of them were okay. A large steel wall was sliding  
over the hatch, blocking exits and entrances.  
Suddenly, one of the ships―the Hurricane 7k― roared to life. It began  
to hover, and the kitsune heard "Oohh ho ho ho!" as the plane aimed  
its guns at the covered hatch. With three blasts from the cannons, the  
steel wall and the hatch door crumbled. The ship then made its way out  
of the hangar.  
"Crap!" said Tails. He thought quickly: _If I bring a ship, I'll have  
to shoot down the Hurricane 7k... Guess I'd better go by tail._  
A flick of his second tail hurtled him through the chilly winter air. 


	4. Chapter 4

Tails flew through the sky like a furry comet, tailing the Hurricane  
7k closely. But not close enough. He flicked his second tail again,  
and he gathered the winds around him and shot forward like a bullet.  
Tails dropped onto the Hurricane's right wing with a hollow CLANG! and  
quickly grabbed onto it. He looked into the cockpit. "Noel, Robotnik!"  
he yelled.  
Ivorald G. Robonik IV stared at Tails for a shocked second before his  
expression hardened again. He pulled on the joystick, causing the  
Hurricane 7k to fly into a barrel roll. Tails slipped and spun through  
the air, then quickly regained balance and shot back to the Hurricane  
7k. This time, he landed on top of the cockpit.  
Tails swiftly opened the cockpit. Before Robotnik could react, Tails  
kicked him in the head and he lost consiousness. Tails turned on the  
voice-autopilot and said, "Head back to the workshop." He pulled  
Robotnik out of the plane as it turned and flew off.  
Tails passed by Tornado and Static on the way to the city jail. Static  
was starting to wake up. "Hey you two!" called Tails. "Go to Niro's  
house! I'll be there in half an hour." They seemed to have heard him,  
because Static stood up from the plant bed and placed Tornado on his  
shoulders. They sped away.  
In front of the city jail, three officers were eating donuts and  
laughing. They stopped and came to attention when they saw Tails  
descending.  
"Robotnik got out again, eh?" he said.  
The police looked confused.  
Tails sighed. "Don't tell me you didn't even notice!"  
One of them cleared his throat. "That was our mistake, Kitsune. Thank  
you for returning him." He brought out hand-cuffs and locked them onto  
Robotnik's hands.  
"I suggest a straightjacket," said Tails. "He can do anything with any  
kind of hand freedom."  
"Of course, Kitsune. And we'll use one of your 'inescapable cells'  
that you installed for us."  
With a nod, Tails flicked his second tail and flew off again. He  
checked his watch. "Oh no, it's already 3 o'clock! I'm late for Niro's  
party."  
Quickly, the kitsune flew back to his workshop. He punched in the  
passcode, which had righted itself while he was gone, and stepped inside. It seemed that RINCaHS was already busy cleaning up the place;  
most of the sticky paste was gone, the couches and tables were  
standing, and his chandelier was hanging again.  
"Welcome back, sir," said RINCaHS. "The Hurricane 7k arrived 10.459  
minutes ago and is currently undergoing maintenance. 43.216% of the  
facility has been repaired, sir."  
"Good work, RINCaHS," replied Tails. He proceeded to the elevator and  
pressed the button AG9. The elevator ascended swiftly and opened into  
another lobby-type room, only this one was more homely. Bean bag  
chairs were positioned around the vast room, next to small tables with  
books, magazines, and games. There were several doors all the way  
along the walls.  
Tails opened one of these doors, revealing a simple, small room with a  
tiny bookshelf and a desk. Tails' office. On the desk sat two average-  
sized gift boxes and one that was slightly larger. He took a last  
glance around the room to make sure everything was in order, then  
closed the door behind him.  
He returned to floor AG1-the lobby-where robotic arms came out from  
the walls and ceiling to repair the damage caused by Ivorald. Again,  
Tails' eyes swept across the place, making sure everything was going  
along as they should.  
He flew to Niro's house, which was four blocks from his own. The  
building was a fairly new, three-story complex.  
Tails remembered building it 20 years ago, after he had accidentally  
destroyed Niro's original home while fighting with a past villan. Niro  
had been furious. He was going to have Tails jailed! He was only  
satisfied after Tails finished building the three story building (at  
no cost). Now, Niro loves the house, and considers it a blessing that  
Tails destroyed his one story house.  
Niro stood outside the building. When he saw Tails, he smiled and waved.  
"You're late," he said as Tails landed.  
"I know, sorry. Trouble at the workshop," said the kitsune.  
"It's alright. Come inside! Tornado and her friends are so excited to  
see your 'magic.'" Niro grinned.  
"Okay," said Tails. "Oh! This is for you." He handed the larger gift  
box to Niro.  
"Thanks," said Niro. "I have a gift for you too, inside." He opened  
the door and they went inside.  
Static and Tornado were already there, laughing and talking among other friends and neighbors. There were roughly 30 people in the  
house, which was an okay number for a house this large. Tails was  
greeted at the door by Niro's friends' children, who were excited to  
see "kitsune magic."  
"Calm down, kids," Tails said with a smile. He passed them and found  
Tornado and Static in the crowd. "Come to the guest room with me," he  
told them.  
They went up one flight of stairs to the second floor and into an  
average-sized room with a queen-size bed and a mostly empty closet.  
Tails sat on the bed.  
"Did you bust Ivo?" asked Static. "He launched sticky water balloons  
at me!"  
"He's in jail now, Static," said the kitsune. "Come here." When Static  
came closer Tails gave him one of the two remaining gift boxes. Static  
ripped the box open and pulled from it a shiny pair of custom shoes.  
"Sweet! New shoes! Thanks Uncle Tails!" exclaimed Static. He slipped  
off his old shoes and put on the new ones, which fit him perfectly,  
and zipped away to join the party downstairs.  
"Is that one mine?" asked Tornado.  
"Yes," said Tails. He gave it to the echidna. "Be careful. It is  
fragile."  
Tornado opened it slowly. Inside the cardboard was another box, made  
of styrofoam. When Tornado removed the lid of the styrofoam, she found  
a very intricate glass statuette. The statuette consisted of about  
twelve dolphins twisting around each other in an animated tornado.  
"Wow!" said Tornado. "It's beautiful!"  
"I thought you'd like it," said Tails. "Now you have four of them  
right?"  
"Uh huh! I'll go put it with the others!" she gently placed the  
statuette into the styrofoam and carefully carried it out. "Thanks,  
uncle," she said as she walked out. "Merry Christmas!"  
Niro's party was fantastic, as usual. The adults played pool, poker,  
and drank a little, the kids played with their new toys, and around  
sunset Tails gave a little demo of his power to the guests. When Tails  
finally went home, well past dusk, he was exhausted, but Christmas day  
was a blast.


	5. Chapter 5

Journal  
There's perseverance, which is admirable, and there's  
stubbornness, which is just annoying.

The next morning, after helping Niro clean up the house, Tails went to  
his workshop. He went down to floor BG5 and continued his experiments  
involving genetics. Then, about an hour later, the entire facility  
went dark.  
Tails waited patiently. It wasn't the first time this happened.  
Evidently, when one is over 900 years old, not much happens "for the  
first time."  
"Facility is now operating on emergency energy," said RINCaHS as the  
lights flickered back on, slightly dimmer than before.  
"What is the problem?" asked the kitsune.  
"City-wide power failure," answered the super computer. "Origin: 32  
degrees north, 17 degrees west from here."  
Tails rolled his eyes. "Ivorald." He stood. "RINCaHS, please record  
the mitosis of these samples while I am away." He entered the  
elevator, ascended to the lobby, and locked the workshop door as he  
left. He flicked his second tail and flew northwest.  
Soon Tails arrived at a building similar to his workshop, but smaller  
and cruder. A twirl of his first tail yanked the iron door off its  
hinges and threw it aside. Tails calmly strolled into the sinister  
complex, as though he did this on a daily basis (which is close to the  
truth).  
Tails walked down a couple long corridors with many doors lining them,  
but he walked on with certainty. Finally he stopped at a door. Tails  
promptly used his tail to rip the door out. Inside, the room was  
ominously dark. Tails flicked his fifth tail and it ignited, providing  
him with a couple yards of vision.  
"Mr. Robotnik-"  
"That's DOCTOR Robotnik to you!" came a voice from the dark.  
"-would you kindly explain why you caused a city-wide blackout?"  
The round man stepped into Tails' view. He looked triumphant. "Excuse  
me for that," he said. "It was necessary for my newest achievement. Of  
course, had I owned one of those 'chaos emeralds' that my ancestors  
write about, it would make my job so much easier."  
Tails briefly remembered an event that occurred 300 years ago. He and Shadow the Hedgehog had decided to destroy the emeralds to keep them  
out of the wrong hands. Tails thought Shadow would live just as long  
as he, but unfortunately Shadow sacrificed his life in the chaos blast  
that destroyed the emeralds.  
"So what is this 'newest achievement?" Tails asked. Probably something  
else for me to destroy, he thought.  
"Take a look." Ivorald flipped a switch and the lights came on.  
Behind Ivorald-just out of sight earlier-were two reptilian  
creatures, one purple, one green. They had scaly tails, leather wings,  
catlike eyes, snake tongues, and huge fangs. They were repulsive.  
"What is this?" asked Tails. "A mutation?"  
"No, no, no." replied Ivorald. "This, my frienemy, is perfection."  
For the first time in over 200 years, Tails was confused.  
Ivorald laughed. "Think about it Tails. If you're a creature of myth,  
of magic-"  
"Science," added Tails.  
"-then why don't other mythological creatures exist as well?"  
Then Tails understood. "Dragons." For a second, fear gripped him. He  
was unused to the chilling cold of fear. He shivered. "But... They  
don't exist..." he whispered.  
But Ivorald's logic made sense. If he, Tails, was indeed a character  
of magic, then who was to say that other creatures of magic did not  
exist as well? It made perfect sense.  
Ivo grinned. "I think you have found your match."  
The green dragon walked forward and stood in front of Tails. They just  
stared at each other for several long minutes.  
"Well?" said Robotnik.  
"Well what?" asked Tails.  
"Aren't you going to fight each other?" said Robotnik. Now he sounded  
confused.  
"Why?" asked Tails. "He isn't doing any harm. If anything, I should be  
fighting you. You're the one that caused the black out." The kitsune  
moved toward Ivorald, but the green dragon stopped him. "Get out of  
the way," Tails said. "I don't want to hurt you."  
The dragon stayed where he was, but when Tails tried to go around him,  
he blocked him. Annoyed, Tails flicked his second tail and blew wind  
at the green dragon. His wings billowed and he was propelled out of  
the way. Tails passed the purple dragon, who in no way showed signs of wanting to defend Robotnik. She watched him, and Tails felt like she  
was waiting to see who was stronger-Tails or Ivorald.  
"Alright, Robotnik, you're going back to jail... Again..." as Tails  
reached out to grab the doctor, he felt a sharp pain on the back of  
his head. He turned. The purple dragon stared at him, raising a metal  
bar.  
"Stop it," he told the dragons. "You're not helping the situation." He  
glanced to his right, where the green dragon was advancing toward him.  
"You want a fight?" Tails' fists clenched.  
Fast as lightning, the purple dragon dropped her metal bar and lunged  
at Tails with her claws extended. Tails sidestepped out of the way. At  
the same time, the green dragon charged and spun, whipping his clubbed  
tail at the kitsune. Tails grabbed the scaly tail and yanked it,  
pulling the green dragon toward him. He punched the dragon hard in the  
face. The green dragon fell backward onto the purple, and they both  
toppled onto the ground.  
Then Tails felt a hand on his shoulder and a knife at his neck.  
Robotnik. Tails laughed. In the current scene, he could've been a  
madman.  
"You're going to kill me, Robotnik?" The kitsune said. He activated  
his first tail and bent the knife away from his neck. The knife  
twisted and crumpled, becoming useless. Tails stomped hard on Ivo's  
foot behind him. Robotnick yelped and let go of Tails. The fox whipped  
around and swung his fist, punching Ivorald in the gut. Ivorald  
doubled over with a gasp. Tails raised his foot high and brought it  
down over Robotnik's head, and the doctor went down.  
Tails faced the dragons and angled himself so that he could face both  
of them. They watched each other, none moving, sizing each other up.  
The green dragon moved first. His nostrils began to smoke and Tails  
knew what was coming.  
Just as the first breath of fire streamed out towards him, Tails  
twirled his fifth tail. The flames stopped in midair, then turned and  
shot back at the green dragon. The dragon raised his arm and the fire  
disintegrated against it.  
Suddenly, a long purple claw slashed Tails across the face. Tails  
winced and turned, touching his face. He gasped, more with shock then  
with pain. He felt the blood soak into his glove. The purple dragon  
looked at her blood-smeared claw. Tails' blood. It had been a long time-  
almost longer than Tails could remember-since an enemy had gotten  
close enough to draw blood. Tails' shock turned to anger.  
"Enough!" growled the fox. "It ends here!"  
He spun his first tail, and kept spinning it. It began to glow. Tails  
raised his arms, then pulled them in sharply. Immediately, the roof  
and the walls began to fold and cave in. Tails clenched his fists. The  
entire Robotnik facility came crashing down. Tails pushed the falling  
rubble away from him mentally and studied the wreckage. Ivorald  
and the dragons were buried, but somehow Tails knew they were alive.  
As Tails' anger receded, guilt replaced it. He sighed. "I really need  
to control myself." He left the scene.

*******

"Sir," said RINCaHS. "Do you wish to rinse your gloves?"  
"No thanks," said Tails.  
He was in his office, leaning back in his chair with his feet up on  
the desk like Sonic used to do. He held his glove in his hand, staring  
at the red stain.  
Tails wondered if he should use his eighth tail and heal the cut, but  
decided to leave it to natural processes. If it gets infected, I'll  
heal it, he thought.  
"This troubles me, RINCaHS," said the kitsune finally.  
"Sir?" said RINCaHS questioningly.  
"Those dragons. They were able to attack me. That hasn't happened  
since I built you."  
RINCaHS was silent, as though she was thinking about the information.  
At last she answered, "The world is always changing, Tails. As you  
have told me many times, be prepared."


	6. Chapter 6

Journal  
Just because one is dead doesn't mean he is gone. The dead find other places to live, in memories, in dreams, and most importantly, in the hearts of their loved ones. 

Tails overslept the next morning, and at 11:00 am rushed out toward the workshop to expand his studies. He was about to fly away when a voice called out behind him.  
"Hey Uncle Tails!"

It was Static. Tails turned and greeted him. "Hello, Static. What brings you here today?"

"I've had a problem with the machinery you've given me. I need you to take a look... Please?" said Static, remembering some manners toward the end. Static was Tails' apprentice in mechanics and often helped him so that RINCaHS could focus on another task.

"Okay, I'll see what I can do," the kitsune replied, disappointed by the delay in his research. "What is the problem?" he asked as they started walking to Static's small house.

"The gears won't connect properly," Static explained. "It's causing the whole mechanism to freeze up."

"I see."

"Come on, Uncle! Let's make this quick!" Static said. Without skipping a beat, Static ran at speed of sound down the sidewalk. Tails whipped his second tail and followed, rolling his eyes as the wind billowed around him.

_So impatient,_ thought Tails.

They reached Static's small house in less than a minute. Static opened up his garage and showed Tails his newest project.

"What are you building, exactly?" Tails asked.

"It's a hoverboard!" Static exclaimed, beaming. "Or, at least, it's supposed to be a hoverboard."

"Very good, for such an advanced task! However, the problem is obvious. See these wires?

They're getting tangled..." Tails helped Static fix his hoverboard. He only instructed his apprentice; he did not touch the board itself. Tails wanted this project to be entirely Static's handiwork. He wanted Static to be proud of it.

"Try it now," Tails commanded after a couple hours of fixing and tweaking.

Static nodded, and after strapping the board to his feet, he activated it. It began to glow and hummed to life, and gradually lifted itself off the stone garage floor.

"Excellent!" Tails praised. "Well done!"

"Thanks!" Static answered, smiling broadly. Suddenly, the hoverboard sputtered and dropped ungraciously to the floor, throwing Static off balance.

"What now?" Static groaned in exasperation.

"It seems the battery life is...insufficient," Tails noted. "I have a spare battery in the lab that will fit your board. The battery's life is much longer than your current one, and it's rechargable. Do you want it?"

"Yes!" Static blurted immediately. He was clearly very excited.

"Okay, let's go," Tails said, chuckling.

"Faster, Uncle!" Static demanded, but before he could take off, Tails grabbed his arm.

"We will walk, Static, like dignified mechanics. Patience," Tails said.

Static heaved a large sigh. "Walking is so slow!" But he walked alongside Tails nevertheless.

After they left the city and neared the cliffside, Tails stopped, frowning.

"What?" Static asked rather impatiently.

"Usually the building is visible from here," the kitsune replied. His eyes lit up with enthusiasm. "Maybe RINCaHS has perfected that old cloaking device!" Giddy as a child, Tails flicked his second tail and zoomed up the path.

"Hey!" Static protested, dashing after him.

When Tails stopped at the edge of the cliff, he discovered that RINCaHS did not, in fact, repair the cloaking device. His workshop lay in ruins around him, crushed into heaps of rubble. Everything was destroyed; there was not a single working mechanism in sight. He could tell that more than half of his beautiful workshop had fallen into the sea at the edge of the cliff. The rest was heartbreaking to see.

"...Oh no..." Static breathed as he stopped beside his mentor and took in the scene.

Tails was frozen in disbelief. He was speechless. _This isn't happening,_ he thought. _It can't be happening. I'm dreaming..._

_Almost 900 years worth of research and knowledge, gone! And RINCaHS..._

He walked through the destruction in a daze, observing it but not processing it. Then something gleaming purple in the sunlight caught his eye. He walked over and peered at it.

A single purple scale lay amongst the waste. He stared at the scale. He felt like it was mocking him, laughing at him. Immediately, Tails knew who the perpetrator behind this horrible crime was. Dragons.

Once again, anger boiled inside the kitsune. He felt his hands ball into fists. He started shaking with anger. Tails' fur began to change color, becoming bright white.

"Static," Tails said slowly. "Run. Run and tell everyone to stay away."

"Okay, Uncle..." Static said, backing up. "Uh, take it easy..." he added before turning and running away at light-speed.

Tails covered his face with his arms. He could barely contain his anger. Hold it in, hold it in before you kill someone! Tails commanded himself. The chaos does not control you; you are in control! YOU ARE IN CONTROL! DON'T LET IT OUT DON'T LET IT—

Tails snapped. His fur turned a dazzling white and his irises became blood red. The kitsune let out an anguished roar that rivaled even a dragon's bellow. At the same time, all of his nine tails activated.

Pitch-black flames ignited in the air around Tails and danced around him. Tails' feet lifted off the ground and he was suspended in midair. The wind picked up drastically and metal chunks from the remains of the workshop swirled around Tails. Clouds darkened and rushed to him. The nearby sea became a watery tempest. Thunder boomed, the earth shook, and lightning cracked the sky.

Tails the Chaos Kitsune was also changing. He felt power surge into him. With all his tails activated at once, he felt invincible. Tails' eyesight and hearing intensified, as did his strength. He was going to find those dragons and kill them, rip them to pieces—

With his enhanced vision, Tails saw the frightened expressions of the citizens in his home city as they pointed and stared at his personal storm. _Good,_ he thought. _They should be afraid._

Meanwhile, a small, thin piece of paper floating around the gales had somehow made its way through Tails' spherical spiral of black flames and smacked into the back of his head. With annoyance, the kitsune grabbed it and prepared to shred it. When he saw the image on it, however, he stopped.

It was an old photograph of Sonic. The blue hedgehog was standing coolly with his arms crossed, gazing nonchalantly at the camera. A very young, twin-tailed fox was jumping into the shot with a wide, playful grin.

Tails stared at the photo, anger and pain leaving his face. Slowly, the raging storms calmed and Tails descended back to the ground.

As he studied the picture, a tear rolled down his cheek. He wiped it away, smiling. With a chuckle, Tails said, "Hello, Sonic. It's been a very long time... I was beginning to forget what you looked like!" He laughed. "You're right, I shouldn't have lost my temper like that." Tails looked up from the photograph to the sky, where the storm clouds had disappeared, giving way to sunshine. "I know you're watching me now. I'll make you proud, Sonic." Tails glanced down at the photo again. Then he folded it carefully and tucked it into his glove.

"But first... There's something I need to do." 


	7. Chapter 7

Journal  
As strong as you think you are, do not ever charge into battle. Assume your opponent is stronger than you. Gather information before acting. If you think you know your enemy, you may be surprised.

Tails flew quickly and worriedly through the sky, with only half a plan of what he will do when he reached his destination.  
"I'll hide," he told himself again. "I'll hide and listen to their plans." But how will he hide? Once again, Tails wished that he had the power to become invisible. However, his kitsune status only gave him elemental abilities. The next best thing would be to fly and hide in a cloud. But Tails would need two of his tails to fly and to manipulate the water vapor to his exact needs, and kitsune power was strictly one element at a time. "Curse these restrictions!" the frustrated kitsune growled. "I am the most powerful being alive, and yet I still face difficult challenges..."  
Looking down, Tails saw that he had arrived at his destination: the ruins of Robotnik's lab. He hovered high in the sky, taking in the scene. Robotnik's facility was in the exact state as Tails' own lab, but there was less debris as Robotnik's lab was much smaller than Tails' lab. Surveying the area, Tails noticed not two, not three, but nine dragons-purple, green, gold, red, orange, blue, white, grey, and black-sitting around a round man amongst the wreckage.  
"So they survived," Tails grumbled with a needle of disappointment poking his heart. "And now they have friends." This scene worried him. If seven more dragons successfully came through to Robotnik from their original dimension, then how many more could come? "I need to know what they're saying," Tails decided.  
He landed quietly behind a pile of rubble near the group of dragons and Robotnik. Then the kitsune flicked his first tail roughly. A heap of scrap metal far from him rattled as chunks mysteriously began sliding down the pile. The sound of metal scraping and clanging against other metal disrupted the dragons, and they covered their ears and closed their eyes in sick disgust.  
Tails used these seconds of blindness to sneak closer to the dragons. When he was within hearing range, Tails lay flat on his stomach in the grass and waved his fourth tail. Instantly, a net of soft grass grew around him and encased him. From only a small distance, the kitsune appeared to be an uneven spot in the field. It was the perfect disguise.  
The dragons recovered their senses when the metal finally settled itself again and they sat in silence. Finally, Robotnik spoke.  
"As I was saying, I am very glad to see that all of you are here. Although, it is unfortunate that one did not make it."  
"Yes," the purple dragon cut in. Her voice was strong, commanding, and smooth, like that of a woman, not a dragon. _She must be the leader,_ Tails thought.  
The purple dragon stood and looked over her scaly companions. "Your leader, Jazik, perished as he passed through the portal. Maybe he was just old, but the force was too much for him. May Jazik rest in peace."  
The dragons bowed their heads respectfully.  
"As your second-in-command, I will assume the role of leader," the purple dragon said.  
"Hail Lady Jaida!" the dragons cheered. Judging by their voices, Tails guessed that the other eight dragons were male.  
"Now, hold on a second." Robotnik's voice reached Tails' ears. "You are moving too fast. Think about this. Jaida is an unseasoned leader in a strange new world. I, on the other hand, have been a leader on this planet for my entire lifetime."  
Liar, Tails thought acidly.  
"Don't you think that you will be much better off under my command?"  
As Tails listened to the dragons grumble thoughtfully about this proposal, a female voice-the purple dragon, Jaida-cleared her throat. "Robotnik, that is a very generous offer," she said warmly. She put her arm around the doctor, smiling. Her dragon fangs made the smile look more like a scowl. "I am sure we will have a great time under your rule."  
"Oh ho ho! That is the right choice, Jaida! Good, good!" Robotnik said gleefully.  
"Ah, but I think we dragons will have an even greater time under my rule. After all, my first order of business is to kill you." Jaida's smile became a growl as she clawed Robotnik, spun him around, and slammed his face into a metal panel protruding from the soil. As she let go, Robotnik slumped to the ground. He turned himself over and looked at Jaida.  
"I did nothing wrong! Don't kill me!" Ivorald pleaded.  
"WRONG!" Jaida hissed. She fingered Robotnik's chin with her razor-sharp claws. Robotnik gulped.  
"I know you killed Jazik," Jaida said. "You killed him in the portal, cutting the power before he came all the way through. You hoped to rule over the dragons and USE US to conquer this world." Jaida snarled and scratched Robotnik across the face. "Dragons are not that stupid, you fool!"  
"I'm sorry! You can rule and I'll be your loyal subject, honest!" Ivorald cried.  
Jaida laughed maliciously. "Did you know that every dragon has a special talent, Doctor?" she asked. "We each have a special ability, power, or feature that defines us. If you pay attention you will learn my power." Jaida raised Robotnik's hand and kissed it softly. "My special talent, my defining ability, is poison," she whispered. Then Jaida roared, and two thick, three-inch fangs lodged into Robotnik's bare hand.  
The doctor screamed.  
He screamed and screamed, cry after anguished cry. It was Tails' turn to flatten his ears and shut his eyes in silent horror. Robotnik kept up his bloodcurdling howl of pain as Jaida's venom spread slowly and excruciatingly throughout his body. The cry traveled through Tails' covered ears without much difficulty. The sound traveled from the ear through Tails' body and resonated deep in his soul. It stung his ears and sent shivers all about the kitsune, making him want to scream as well.  
"Music to my ears," Jaida commented with a sadistic laugh as Robotnik's cry faded into a whimper. "Now, let's hunt. One cannot plan world domination on an empty stomach." As Jaida spread her wings, the other eight did the same. They flew after her in a V-formation, like hideous, scaly birds.  
As soon as Tails was sure they were gone, he scrambled from his hiding place and knelt beside Robotnik. His nemesis was green, turning pale. Tails knew what he had to do.  
Very gently, Tails lifted his eighth tail and brushed it over Robotnik's hand. His tail began to glow a soft white, unlike the blinding fur of the Chaos power. The pain on Robotnik's face eased, but Tails flinched when Jaida's venom exited the wound and touched his tail, burning more than any fire. It startled Tails out of his healing magic and Robotnik groaned as the pain returned.  
Taking a deep breath, the kitsune activated his eighth tail again. Instead of returning it to the hand wound, however, he waved it in front of the half-conscious doctor. Tails felt dread weigh him down when he saw the extent of the poison's flow. It had almost reached Ivorald's heart and brain.  
"Wh...Why did you stop..." Robotnik coughed.  
"Ivorald, I'm sorry. The poison has spread to far... I can't help you."  
Robotnik said nothing, but heaved a shaky sigh. Tails looked away from him. Sure, he was Tails' strongest nemesis. But the kitsune had never really hated the doctor. All Robotnik wanted was fame. Although he made a wrong turn to find it, Tails believed Robotnik had it in him to change. The two could've been partners...  
But Robotnik was as good as dead now.  
"T-T..." Ivorald stuttered.  
Tails looked back at him questioningly.  
"I... I w-wanted to r-r-rule this world... Not d-des-destroy it..."  
Tails leaned in closer to Ivorald, as his voice was fading.  
"Those dragons w-were a mistake. They'll... They'll kill everyone..! I didn't... I didn't want that..." Ivorald coughed hard, then drew a frail, trembling breath. "Save the world, Tails," he whispered. "S-save it from me."  
"I will, Ivorald. I will right this mistake. I promise you," Tails told the doctor. "I won't let you down."  
Robotnik seemed satisfied by this, for he sighed deeply and closed his eyes. He was gone.  
After checking Robotnik's pulse to be sure, the kitsune stood and backed away from him. He deserves some kind of burial... I'll cremate him, Tails thought. A flick of his fifth tail set it on fire. He was about to set the body ablaze when an enormous roar shook the land.  
"IT'S THE KITSUNE! KILL HIM!"  
Tails cursed silently. _I should've been more careful..._ The kitsune pointed two fingers at Robotnik. A thin stream of flames shot fourth from his fingers and, upon contact with the body, spread quickly. Then Tails whirled his second tail and sped through the debris as the putrid stench of burning flesh filled the air.  
He could hear the dragons struggling to catch up, beating their wings to gain more speed. Tails was already going at a breakneck pace, but he pushed himself harder. _I have to get away, lose them, he thought. But how? Where will I go..._ He glanced upward at the sky. Some of the clouds he had gathered during his rage were still floating about. _Perfect._ The kitsune pushed off the ground and zoomed toward the clouds, disappearing into the thickest one. He picked up the faint fap, fap, fap of leathery wings as he flew complicated patterns in the large cloud.  
As the noise grew louder, Tails could tell that dragons entered the large cloud with him. The kitsune then flew forward, exiting the cloud and entering another. He couldn't tell if the dragons were following, but whenever he heard the fap, fap of the dragons' wings he did his best to fly away from it.  
Another angry roar echoed across the sky. _If they keep that up I'll be deaf, _Tails thought with a twinge of annoyance. Then, suddenly, all the clouds dispersed and Tails was left exposed in the sky. "What the?" he cried out in surprise. Then he noticed the grey dragon hovering in the air with his wings and glowing blue eyes. _The clouds seemed to be heading toward him and disappearing into him... He's absorbing them! _Tails realized in awe. _Incredible...  
_ Tails knew he needed a new tactic as soon as the dragons saw him. A dangerous, risky idea popped into his head and the kitsune gathered the winds and rocketed down towards earth. The speed of his plummet brought tears to his eyes but he did not slow down. The ground was rushing upward very quickly to meet him. But Tails could tell his plan was working as he noticed that the dragons had pulled into the dive with him.  
At the last possible second, Tails pulled the winds around him and created an air cushion. He stopped inches from gravel and quickly flew off again, level with the ground, the satisfying CRUNCH of crashing dragons reaching his ears. Tails slowed down, but sped up again when he looked back and saw that three dragons-Jaida, the gold dragon, and the blue dragon-tailing him closely. _They avoided the crash!_  
_Time to change tactics,_ Tails thought. But before he zipped away, a green, scaly claw protruded from the ground suddenly and grasped Tails' leg tightly. The kitsune stopped flying and fell to the ground. He struggled to free himself as the others drew closer, but unfortunately Tails wasn't very strong physically.  
As Jaida and the other two came closer, Tails swept his sixth tail across the dirt. As the tail became activated, the rocks and soil mimicked the movement and hurled itself at the oncoming reptiles, raining rocks on them and lodging dust in their eyes. The dragons were temporarily blinded. Tails raised a particularly large rock and dropped it on the green arm holding him, and it quickly unclasped. Then the kitsune used his earth powers to push the dirt under his feet forward, and he took off, speeding away from the dragons.  
Tails glanced back and saw that the gold dragon, blue dragon, and Jaida were still coming. He also realized where his current path was taking him: his workshop. Another idea formed in his head. As he neared the cliff, Tails veered off the main path and onto the rocks, toward the edge of the cliff. Then, at full speed, he shot off the edge toward the ocean below.  
Falling, he flicked his third tail. The water rose up and caught him a pillow. Air bubbles below the surface of the water rose and formed a helmet of air around the kitsune's head. He whirled his tails like a rudder which did two things: it moved him like a submarine, and at the same time, the activated, spinning third tail formed a strong current to push him.  
He didn't really care where he was going at this point. Tails just wanted to lose the dragons. _When I lose them, I can't go back to the city, _he realized._ What then...?  
Don't think about that now! Worry about it later!_  
Suddenly, something dropped into the seawater above him. Tails looked up and cursed under his breath. The blue dragon descended toward him, smiling triumphantly, bubbles blowing out his now visible gills.  
_ So this is his special talent_, Tails thought. _There's a dragon for every tail of mine!_  
Tails pushed his current and swam downward. He needed something-a trench, coral reef, anything-to lose the blue dragon. He figured that Jaida was waiting above the surface of the water for him. Resurfacing was not an option.  
The blue dragon was catching up to Tails. Clearly, the dragon was built for the water, unlike Tails, who had to adapt to it. If Tails didn't find cover fast, he'd be overtaken.  
Fortune must have been on his side, for a little ways off grew a kelp forest. Tails quickly dove toward it. He closed his eyes as he reached the kelp. He swam toward the base of the kelp, turning when he felt that he should, not wasting time by looking back. After a couple minutes, he stopped, scanning the area. The kelp swayed peacefully, undisturbed by movement. The shine of blue scales was nowhere to be seen.  
_ I lost him,_ Tails thought with relief. Then looking around, he added,_ I lost myself, too. Where am I?  
_ The kitsune swam carefully at the floor of the forest, trying not to disturb the kelp. Any unnatural movement-a sway in the wrong direction, for instance-would betray his location. He had draped fallen kelp over him to hide his bright orange fur from any spying eyes_. I have to get away from this kelp forest before I resurface,_ Tails thought. _Otherwise, the blue dragon will see me when I rise.  
_ Finally, Tails exited the kelp, but the landscape was different than it was when he went in. _I'm lost._ He swam slowly further from the kelp forest and the blue dragon. When Tails believed he was far enough, he adjusted his kelp cloak and carefully rose to the surface, for rising quickly was hazardous to one's health. From both above and below, the kitsune looked like a loose clump of seaweed.  
Once Tails reached the surface, he floated around, looking for something familiar. But his workshop cliff was nowhere to be seen, nor any other landform. There was nothing but the ocean waves and the setting sun.  
"Crap," the kitsune muttered. "My plan backfired. It'll do me no good to be lost at sea..."  
After resting for a bit, he flicked his second tail and flew around in a wide circle above the water, searching for a hint of land. He knew he needed to go further to find it, but at the same time, he didn't want to advance for fear of going the wrong way.  
Ultimately, Tails knew there was only one option that guaranteed his safe and speedy return to land, although he hated the idea.  
"As much as I dislike it," he told himself, "It's the only way. I have to become the Chaos Kitsune." 


End file.
